Getting started

While editing pages is one thing, creating new pages is another. If you have something original to add to the site, you can add new pages in two ways.

First, you can simply craft a URL for the page you want. Take any page and see that the URL is structured as http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/index.php?title=Something where Something is the title of the page. Spaces are represented as underscores. You can simply put the URL you want in your address bar and when you hit the page, it will immediately bring you to the edit screen.

Secondly, you can use a space, like your User Page which is accessible by clicking your name at the top of the page, as a sandbox of sorts. Just add a link to a page that doesn't exist in that page (ex: [[Link to a page that doesn't exist]]), click it, and you will be able to edit the new page.

Categories

The MythTV wiki has chosen to make use of the MediaWiki categorization features to better organize content.

A top level category named "Knowledge Base" has been selected. All other categories should be placed into this category which makes them automatically sub-categories.

How do I categorize a page?

Simply add the line

[[Category:Name]]

where Name is the name of the category, to any article to put it in a category. Editing a category page will likewise categorize the category making it a sub-category rather than a linked article.

What category should I use?

Use what makes sense. Look at the list of categories from the Special Pages link to the left to see what already exists. If nothing matches, create one, but be sure to edit the new category page and place it into a category, even if it is "Knowledge Base"

Can I categorize a page more than once?

Yes, just add more Category lines to the page and it will exist in multiple categories.

How do I create a category?

Easy, just put a page into a category that doesn't exist and the category link at the bottom of the page will be a link to edit the new category. Be sure to categorize your category new (see below).

How do I categorize a category?

Categories are pages, just as all other pages are; in addition to the list of pages (and subcategories) in a category, there's a space at the top for content which describes the category. In addition to this "real" content, you can also include Category tags, which will make that category into a sub-category of the Category whose take you use.

This is really less complicated than we make it sound here; look at the source for a few category pages, and it will likely become clear to you.

Please don't put an article in a category and also a subcategory. It clutters the hierarchy of the information being presented.

Does everything need to be in a category?

No, not all pages need to be categorized. These Help pages are a good example. They exist on their own and don't need to be lumped in with the rest of the Knowledge Base.

Where should the category wikitext be put?

While not technically required, it is preferred to put [[Category:foobar]] entries at the bottom of the article. This follows the flow better. Something that might alter that is using a template in article that also has categories. Also, try to find the best existing category to fit your article, instead of creating categories on a whim. It

What about transcluded categories?

Categories that are brought in on a page by transcluded templates introduce a caching issue the editor must consider. If the template's categories are updated, it is possible to immediately see this effect on pages using the template. However, the category page which would list the article won't be updated until the actual article itself is saved again.